Blog Extras

My favorite way to spend Mother’s Day is by playing in the dirt. And why not? The apple tree is blooming, the peonies are leafing out, the herb garden is filling in, and the ferns and hostas are almost completely unfurled. So working in my garden is pure pleasure for me. Therefore I’m not interested in being pulled away for a Mother’s Day dinner in a crowded restaurant, no matter how much my family thinks that’s what Mommy wants. But since I’m the cook in the family, I still have to deal with the Mother’s Day meal.

Steaks on the grill? Easy. And for the vegetables, I let the oven do the work.

Roasted Asparagus and Cherry Tomatoes

Ingredients

Asparagus, trimmed

Cherry tomatoes

Olive oil

Coarse salt

Freshly ground pepper

Directions

Heat oven to 400 degrees F

Place asparagus and tomatoes on a rimmed baking pan. Pour a little olive oil over, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and toss vegetables to coat.

When the steaks come off the grill and are resting, put the vegetables in the oven. Roast for 4 minutes, shake the pan, then roast for 3 or 4 more minutes.

Done. The asparagus is crisp on the inside and tender on the outside, and the cherry tomatoes are juicy, hot, and sweet. This easy side dish is fancy enough for Sunday dinner and so simple that it hardly feels like cooking.

I do my asparagus and tomatoes exactly the same way, only I have a grill pan that goes on the outdoor BBQ with the small holes in it. Try that sometime with the olive oil, salt and pepper and grill quickly over the fire for about 8 minutes total. Little squeeze of lemon. Oh my. Absolutely the best.

Hi Avon and blancdeblanc. I do love grilled vegetables! Somehow they just taste sweeter and richer. I do have a pan for the outdoor grill, but I can't get my husband to use it. It's too shiny and new. *Sigh* I think he was the same way about his toys when he was a kid. He grew up to be an architect...does that explain any of that behavior? I think so.

My favorite family cooking traditions
I cook, they clean up after me. It's the kind of tradition I can fully embrace.

My cooking triumphs
No one has asked me to stop yet.

My cooking tragedies
When I was 13, I made pecan rolls for my family. The recipe called for 8 refrigerator biscuits but the package held 10. My mom asked me what I did with the other 2. Judging from the look on her face, "I threw them away" wasn't the right answer.